Tsongas a Dem rubber-stamp?

Golnik says so, but he only would have broken with Republicans twice

LOWELL -- Republican Jon Golnik has tried to paint U.S. Rep. Niki Tsongas as a rubber-stamp for Democratic policies, frequently pointing out that she votes with her party 95 percent of the time.

But when pressed Monday to cite recent votes in Congress where he would have broken from Republicans, Golnik could only give two definitive examples.

Golnik said he would have sided with Democrats by voting for the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which made it easier for women to press discrimination cases. The 2009 bill was supported by only three House Republicans.

Golnik also said he would have broken from the majority of Republicans by opposing the Budget Control Act, which raised the debt ceiling in 2011. Golnik opposed the bill's creation of the Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, also known as the super committee.

Several other votes Golnik cited to prove his bipartisanship are questionable.

For example, Golnik said he would have opposed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in 2010, but he seemed to be unaware that Republicans overwhelmingly rejected the legislation.

Aimed at improving the stability of the financial system, the final bill was approved in the House with the support of 234 Democrats and just two Republicans. In the Senate, the bill passed with the support of 55 Democrats and three Republicans, one of whom was Massachusetts Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown.

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"Scott Brown voted for it. He was kind of my benchmark," said Golnik, when asked to explain how his opposition to the bill could be considered bipartisan.

Golnik also said he would have opposed the 2008 financial bailout bill. Although a majority of Republicans opposed the legislation, many of the party's leaders supported it.

Citing a Washington Post analysis of Tsongas' voting record, Golnik has argued that his voting record would be more reflective of the political heartbeat of the 3rd Congressional District.

"She votes 95 percent of the time with the leadership of her party," he said during a meeting with Sentinel & Enterprise's editorial board Monday morning. "I mean, that doesn't really prove that you're willing to reach across the aisle."

Golnik also said he disagrees with language in the Republican platform calling for a constitutional amendment outlawing abortion with no explicit exceptions for cases of rape or incest.

When asked if Democrats currently have any good ideas, Golnik said he supports allowing young adults to stay on their parents' health-insurance plans until age 26. That provision is included in President Barack Obama's health-care bill, which Golnik wants to repeal.

Golnik said preserving the benefit would be a "one-page fix."

During the hourlong meeting, Golnik also said he is trying to "grow the party" by campaigning in areas of the district that are typically not receptive to Republicans.

"I reach out to everyone," he said. "There isn't a place that I don't go to. And I get kicked for it. Especially by people in my own party."

Tsongas defeated Golnik by 12.5 percentage points two years ago. Golnik hopes the shape of the newly formed district -- which now includes much of North Central Massachusetts, including Fitchburg -- will help propel him to victory this year.

Golnik said his campaign has made thousands of phone calls to voters and has knocked on doors in the district's metropolitan areas, where voters have historically supported Tsongas.

"To the best of our ability, we're going to try to create a little bit of a bulwark against that," Golnik said.

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